HEY, can I get in on the turkey fun??!!!

mad max beyond eggdome

after spending all day at fred's guitar and bbq shop making turkey's and gravy for others yesterday and then telling my wife all about it last night and showing her the pics that the guys posted here on the forum, my wife said this morning, "hey buddy, how about making us a turkey and gravy for dinner tonight". . . so i went and bought a bone-in turkey breast and all the fixings for a simple pancetta-stuffing and did up a MMT with gravy and stuffing for dinner. .. . and it was DAMN GOOD if i do say so myself!!. . .

Austin Smoker

You're killing me! I am ready for the Turkey day coma and it can't get here soon enough.

I am going to use your recipe for the big day.

Celtic Wolf

Did you actually stuff the bird or make dressing?

How about the recipe for that stuffing/dressing?

mad max beyond eggdome

no stuffing in the turkey. .. you know i like to stick an apple/onion/lemon/herbs in my turkey cavity. ..in the case of the turkey breast i basically halved a small onion and a small apple and tucked them under the breast and between the rack. . . worked out fine. .

for the stuffing (ok, technically it was "dressing" since it wasn't in the bird) i cut up a loaf and a half of french bread . . . in a large saute pan, i sauted up some pancetta, finely chopped carrot/onion/celery/mushrooms, added a splash of white wine, cooked till done. .. . then added that to the bread. .. . put in a 13X9 le creuset casserole, added about 1/2 cup of grated parmesan reggiano to that, mixed it all up good, then poured about 3 - 4 cups of chicken stock over it. ...baked it in the oven at 350 for about an hour. . .. stuffing/dressing is the one thing i will not do in the egg. .. even in the most cleanest burning of eggs, i don't like the flavor that 'wet bread' picks up even if it is minimal .. . it was very good smothered in the mad max gravy though

mad max beyond eggdome

LOL, i don't usually make turkey before the big day cause after thanksgiving i'm sick of it!! ...but after my day yesterday at fred's, my wife really wanted it, so i went ahead and did up the small version. ..and it was good... but she'll be eating the leftovers the next few days, not me! :woohoo:

Celtic Wolf

I am thinking that would be really good with corn bread.

Wait that is pretty much my corn bread stuffin' recipe :woohoo:

I use sausage instead of pancetta

Frank from Houma

mad max beyond eggdome

the recipe i use at thanksgiving calls for real itialian ciabbata.. .i usually buy it on monday so its let the moisture out by wednesday when i make it .. . i don't think it would be nearly as good with cornbread with the pancetta and regianno (and chestnuts which i also put in at thanksgiving). .. the full recipe is a classic italian recipe from my girl giada. ...i won't make anything else or deviate from it as it has become very popular with my gang and everyone loves it .... i've never particularly liked sausgge stuffings as the sausage tends to dominate the flavor. . .whereas the pancetta is a very subtle flavor in the background . .. just a matter of choice....i know a lot of folks love their sausage stuffings. ...

mad max beyond eggdome

LOL, yep, one and the same frank!! . .. i was just doin a little one today. .. did you see the pics of me at smokinguitarman's yesterday?. ... did three of them there. .

Frank from Houma

Absolutely - looks like it was a great time.

Check this out - Chef?! :blink: Just a dude that likes to Egg

Celtic Wolf

Cornbread is nor bad with Parm and Pancetta is BACON. I might leave the chestnuts out though

mad max beyond eggdome

very cool!. ..so, whatcha cookin??

mad max beyond eggdome

gee, pancetta is bacon?? ... whoda thunk it??

Celtic Wolf

Well everything is good with Bacon.. You betcha!!

Frank from Houma

Wish we could do a little smokin but the board of health says everything has to be prepared on site and the menu had to be submitted a couple days ahead of time.

Stuffed Fritos
Bacon wrapped tater tots
ABTs
Blackened Redfish
Grilled chicken
Chicken quesadillas
Grilled veggies
Grilled sausage
bananas Foster

We will have two larges and I'm bringing my small. Going to have a blast.

Didn't mean to hijack your thread

mad max beyond eggdome

it may be the same cut of the pig, but simply calling pancetta bacon is like comparing 20buck a pound parma prociutto to a hormel ham. .. same cut of pig, but a completely different taste. ... pancetta adds such a different taste to things than 'bacon', there is really no comparison at all. . ..

mad max beyond eggdome

no hijacking at all. .. sounds like a great menu!!. ..especially your blackened fish, that stuffs outstanding!!!. ..as well as the stuffed fritos. ..didn't you make those in atlanta (someone did, and they were really good!!! and if your bananas foster is anything like RTDs, that will be the perfect ending to the night. ...

eenie meenie

Mad Max, did you have enough drippings from the breast to make enough gravy.....or did you have to buy necks and wings to supplement? The turkey breast looks great!

eenie meenie

mad max beyond eggdome

while i did the butter paste and white wine over the breasts, i didn't get much in the way of drippings. .really only the remnants of the butter and wine with a little bit of fat from the skin and juice from the apple and onion. .. maybe a 1/3 cup worth to throw into the gravy. ... as for the stock, i didn't have the neck and parts, so i just took chicken broth, and threw that into a pot with some carrots/celery/onion/herbs and cooked that up. ..made for a good stock. . . then in a separate pot, i worked up my roux, added the little bit of pan drippings (it was surprising how much "roasted" flavor even that little bit added), the wine, and then the enhanced broth. .. it was still very good MM gravy. . . not quite what i will acheive at thanksgiving, but still much better than you'd ever get out of a jar. ..

Frank from Houma

I did stuffed fritos as well. I did bananas Foster the first time we did a demo cook at my dealer. I wish I could cook em like RTD. They probably don't taste any different but certainly not as good a show as RTDs.

Celtic Wolf

I guess you never had Pancetta flavored Polenta. I seems to remember you gal making something with that combo.

Jeffersonian

Max, I've been surfing the Whiz's site for two weeks getting prepped and psyched to do the MMT again. I do my share of egging all year long, but Thanksgiving is a special day here now because of this recipe.

BTW, my dressing is an apple/onion recipe from a 1980s edition of The Joy of Cooking. I'm glad I kept it...my newer edition doesn't have it, and it's excellent.

mad max beyond eggdome

good stuff brad!!. .. i have two editions of the joy of cooking, one about 25 years old, and one about 10 years old. ..i hear the latest edition has been 'dummied' down for people that have a clue about even the most common cooking terms like making a 'roux' or 'creaming' butter and sugar. . .didn't know they were actually dropping out tried and true recipes. . .good thing i didn't get rid of the old book. ..

you know, i think dressing/stuffing recipes are one of those personal things that once you have one you and your family likes, you never let go of it. ..it becomes one of your family traditions. ..

AZRP

And if anybody, you deserve it!! -RP

mad max beyond eggdome

thanks bud!!, ,,gee, is turkey and gravy on your diet these days?? even if its made with low sodium stock??

JLOCKHART29

Max you are Mr Thanksgiving for sure!